NDAA - ENG 112 Washington NDAA 2012 Constitutional...

ENG 112 WashingtonNDAA 2012 Constitutional ViolationAmerican Government’s Disregard of American PriciplesThose who sacrifice liberty for security deserve neither.-Benjamin FranklinThere has long been conflict in societies, to find the balance between liberty and security.The United States of America is no exception.Many times in history it has gone to lengths to compromise the freedoms and liberties of either its citizens or residents, to insure the security of the country.The most recent of these is the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) of 2012.In a small part of it (section 1031), it stipulates that the military can hold and imprison anyone in the world, including the United States and its citizens, based on suspicion alone.The bill hasn’t been put into law yet, but it was passed 93 to 7 in the US Senate. These violations of the Constitution have happened before and it is an indication of a larger theme of the government usurping its defined power.The bill is in direct violation of the constitution and almost everything America was founded upon.The NDAA has been happening for 48 years.It is for the Department of Defense’s budget appropriations.This year new provisions have been added, including section 1031.It states* that the United States Military can detain, indefinitely, anyone involved with al-Qaeda, Taliban, and or anyone else engaged in hostilities with the United States.It also states that the person maybe held without trial until the end of the hostilities (NDAA Sc.1031). The terrorist part may seem like that is what defines the bill and gives it some weight legally and logically, but the whole idea of terrorism is abstract.The word terror itself is based on emotion.The terrorist groups are boundary-less entities that do not have countries and are not tied down by anything.They exist on ideas, which cannot be contained and made tangible.The fact is it is difficult to

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define who is a terrorist, what is terrorism, and when it has ended.It is a vague provision.The bill was passed by the senate recently with 93 ‘yay’s and 7 ‘no’s.It has not been put on the desk of the president yet, who will probably veto it.The fact that it is not law yet is inconsequential.The fact that it has the possibility and potential to become law is the consequential part.Merriman-Webster’s dictionary defines constitution as: the basic principles and laws of a nation, state, or social group that determine the powers and duties of the government and guarantee certain rights to the people in it.The United States’ constitution certainly fits that and it is held to the highest standard in the United States.The Constitution is what America is built on.

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